With Joe Nation terming out and pursuing Lynn Woolsey's congressional seat in 2006, that leaves the Sixth District Assembly seat straddling Marin and Sonoma counties up for grabs. For all intents and purposes, the real race for this liberal enclave is the Democratic primary next March, and eight fairly heavy hitters have already signed up: Marin Democratic Party chair John Alden; Marin Law Center owner and attorney Greg Brockbank; Deputy State Attorney General Damon Connolly; progressive Fairfax mayor Frank Egger; Natural Resources Defense Council attorney Jared Huffman; Marin County supervisor Cynthia Murray; Petaluma City Council member Pamela Torliatt; and Marin Community College trustee Wanden Treanor.

Gator Bait

A three-foot-long alligator found in a north Napa neighborhood has been euthanized after no one stepped forward to claim it, reports the California Department of Fish and Game. "We don't know who the owner is; it hasn't been determined," says Fish and Game spokesman Troy Swauger, who added that possession of the prohibited species without a special state permit (generally reserved for zoological or educational settings) is a misdemeanor. Swauger, who's been a spokesman for Fish and Game for the past eight years, says this is the first alligator he's run across. "I don't recall every hearing about an alligator in anyone's backyard," he says. "You hear about it in other states, but not around here."

Absent and Accounted

All three measures on the June 7 special election ballot ("Repeat When Necessary," Briefs, May 25) passed with the two-thirds of the vote required for new taxes. Fairfax's Measure F passed easily, gaining 71 percent of the vote. Things were closer in Sonoma County, where a parcel tax increase for Harmony Union School District passed with 68.7 percent of the vote, and approval of West Sonoma County High School District's Measure K was narrowest of all, with just 67.2 percent in favor. Measure K supporter Stella Monday says she almost didn't get to vote. It seems she inadvertently signed up for permanent absentee status back in 2002 but hadn't received a special-election ballot in the mail. Poll workers nearly turned her away at first, but Monday stuck to her guns and voted using a provisional ballot. "All voters should know that under any circumstances, they're entitled to vote using a provisional ballot," says Sonoma County assistant registrar of voters Janice Atkinson.